Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 15:21:43 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Items of possible interest to Cycle-5 proposers


We have posted on the Proposal Kit webpage, at
http://ssc.spitzer.caltech.edu/propkit/, under the heading
"Additional Useful Information," a memo on planning
for high precision relative photometry observations with
IRAC.  This memo will be of particular interest to those
who are proposing to observe transiting exoplanets,
brown dwarf weather, or other phenomena requiring
high precision relative photometry.

We also announce the archival release of nearly 300
hours of MIPS "flats" at 24 microns and "illumination correction"
data at 70 and 160 microns obtained over the past three
years.  These data are being used to characterize and
mitigate against the effect of "dark spots" in the MIPS
pick-off mirror that has affected our flat processing at 24
microns and has led to the development of scan mirror-
dependent flats to correct for these artifacts.  These
calibration data consist of both scan and photometric
observations.  Uniform background and high signal-to-
noise ratio were required for them, so the data were
obtained by observing near the zodiacal plane.
These data have been checked for duplication, and
observers should be able to retrieve them via Leopard,
using the standard MIPS calibration program identification
numbers (pids 1701-1745).

The Microsoft Word proposal templates have been updated to
have 1" margins. They mistakenly had 1.25" margins. As it
says in the Call for Proposals, 1" margins are the minimum size.

A final reminder that General Observer (GO), Guaranteed Time
Observer (GTO), Archival Research (AR) and Theoretical Research (TR)
proposals are due by Friday, 16 November 2007, 5:00 PM PST.
Cycle-5 is the last cryogenic cycle for Spitzer.

Spitzer Science User Support